Xerin Hedashield
Xerin Hedashield is the true antagonist in Across the Portal: Interference and the mistress of Darth Mutialatus. When she was young, she founded and became the Supreme Leader of the Third Order with Darth Mutialatus as her right-hand man. Biography Early life Xerin Hedashield was born in 528 BBY. Creating the Third Order While she was in junior high, Xerin Hedashield realized a boy named Hammass had developed an instant crush on her. She befriended him and learned that, like her, she was a technical genius. It was around this time that she discovered a science tower and decided it would make a good base of operations for the organization she planned to create, the Third Order. During the first date between Hedashield and Hammass, Hedashield woke up in the middle of the night due to thirst, where she realized that she had been holding her boyfriend's hand in slumber. Hedashield worked quietly, reprogramming the robots to serve her alone, to swear all loyalty. She reluctantly had them turn on Hammass and shoot him to ensure they were not followed, and they fled to the science tower just before sunrise. Safe in the science tower, she began organizing the Third Order. She also founded a relatively formal organization called the Grabbers, a band of mercenaries subordinate to the Third Order. Yaxa became an Admiral to the Order, but according to Darth Mutialatus, he was formally stripped of this rank due to his incompetent nature. Xerin, however, still attended high school while presumably operating the Third Order on the side. Apparently, she attended the same high school as the Omnipotent One. When he was ill and in need of an antidote, Hedashield came to his aid. She brought him an exceptionally complex array of treatment materials that he needed. It is possible that she created them herself. This made him very fond of her. Galactic conquest After school, Hedashield returned to her headquarters, remaining secluded within its walls and rarely leaving except on special errands. She always kept an illegally modified blaster under her pillow on her bed. Eventually, she learned from Saint Pyro that a Pearian may appear in the galaxy at some point in the near future. Believing a Pearian would be very useful in her plans of galactic domination, Hedashield ordered Pyro's slaughter, as she hoped to destabilize St. Pyro's Center for Militarized Sciences. While Pyro's assassination was successful, she failed to end the science program, as Pyro, in his dying breaths, placed a scientist named R'ockienc in charge. In the mix, Hedashield began seeking out an apprentice for Darth Mutialatus on the Holonet, which her access to was all but unlimited. Several individuals volunteered, finding this idea an honor. Hedashield was particularly impressed by a small Twi'lek boy named Thomas Slovak, though she accepted the fact that the choice was entirely up to Mutialatus. She chose not to reveal this to him until the time was right, further alluding to her undeniably strong patience. Pearian When she was twenty-eight years old, Xerin Hedashield learned that a Pearian had appeared on Coruscant. She learned that the Pearian, whose name was Kristen, was being accompanied by a Jedi Padawan named B'en'jamin Thorrn, and she sent Yaxa and fellow Grabber Marion to capture the children and bring them unharmed to the science tower to be questioned by Darth Mutialatus. Upon learning of their failure from Mutialatus via comlink, Hedashield ruthlessly arranged for their private execution by General Gore. Somehow, she acquired an exotic marble owned by Jedi Master Yoda and entrusted to a Jedi Knight. Owning the marble confirmed that Kristen and Thorrn were to follow the individual. Immediately after the Grabbers' deaths, Xerin took off in her personal speeder to seek out Kristen and B'en'jamin Thorrn herself, believing that disclosing information whilst leaving out the essentials would earn their trust. She tracked them to an isolated field where they were hiding from the Third Order (albeit ignorant to what the Order was). Thorrn immediately showed her a vintage necklace made of Phrik, which she was glad to hear more about, but Kristen told her about the marble entrusted to them by Yoda. Thorrn fell immediately in love, while Kristen was wary of Hedashield (though she was currently suspicious of everyone). They arrived at Xerin's apartment, where Hedashield brought Thorrn upstairs with her, wishing to speak with them separately in order to give them information they would find incredibly useful whilst cleverly withholding the essentials. When they entered her bedroom, Hedashield changed into her bedclothes and offered Thorrn a snack, before questioning his knowledge of the prophecy of the Chosen One who would bring balance to the Force. Hedashield also revealed that she knew how Kristen appeared in the Star Wars galaxy, something she claimed he did not yet need to know. Xerin tells her to go to the mysterious and all-powerful Omnipotent One. The end of cold war Darth Mutialatus spoke with Hedashield, and they agreed that two Grabbers would not be enough to try again. Concurrently, Mutialatus dispatched ten Grabbers to capture the children on Geonosis. Their mission was a success, but the children fought their way out of their bonds and through the fortress, impressing Hedashield, who was watching them via security camera, with their fighting prowess. Shortly afterwards, she was approached by Captain Cole, who had brought the two children to mask his disenchantment and plan to betray and murder her. Hedashield responded by projecting a shield between herself and her enemies. As if out of nowhere, Darth Mutialatus appeared and killed Captain Cole. Shocked and overcome by agonizing pain, Cole falls to the ground in front of Hedashield. Infuriated that Hedashield was not any less indifferent regarding Cole's unexpected demise, Thorrn challenged her to a duel. In response, Xerin reached under her pillow and grabbed a blaster concealed under it. Standing up, she prepared to incapacitate Thorrn, as the last thing she wanted was to kill him. Suddenly, Cole used his powers to teleport the children away from the apartment and to safety, Hedashield could only watch as they twisted out the window. As Cole's life ebbed away, Hedashield seethed with fury at the loss of two valuable assets to her plans as well as her Captain. Just then, General Gore arrived in the room. Hedashield quietly expressed her doubt that B'en'jamin Thorrn is the Chosen One. Disappointed in Mutialatus for failing to stop Cole or foresee the latter's intent, Hedashield resolved to punish him soundly when she was no longer exhausted and when the two were alone. Hedashield decided that soon, she would risk coming out of the shadows to lead the Third Order, which was now public knowledge, to victory. However, the knowledge that this meant she could hire more able soldiers without fear of exposure or disloyalty comforted her. She took this chance to tell the Dark Lord of her Holonet campaign to find him an apprentice. She arranged to work alongside Mutialatus, an extension of her plan to expose herself before the Dark forces. His back turned, Mutialatus claimed that the Third Order was ready to prove to the Jedi Order that they existed. Xerin contradicted him, assuring him that the time to expose their conquest is not far away at all. In spite of her disappointment at this turn of events, Hedashield hopefully awaited the day that Thorrn would be claimed. Conflict of the Numbers Battle of Coruscant The training of Thorrn A new purpose Physical description Xerin Hedashield was tall, delicate, chubby, and beautiful. She was almost six feet tall. She had long, brown hair which was almost always held back by a simple black headband decorated with a diamond pattern, blue eyes, and was usually seen in one of three types of outfits. When traveling, she wore a decorative scarlet cloak over her body, which was decorated in a red abstract shape a little down from the collar. It was clasped with a carved orange clasp. When indoors, where she spent most of her time, she wore a variety of immodest pajamas which exposed certain areas of her bulging frame. Hedashield had a reasonable degree of regard for her appearance, keeping an extensive wardrobe with the clothes she deemed comfortable. By the time the Pearian had been located, Hedashield had a very large gut. She also had soft and tender skin. Because she was out of shape and lacked heavily in terms of physical strength, she relied on her henchmen to do most of her work in the Dark side of the Force. Personality and traits As the Supreme Leader of the Third Order, Xerin Hedashield is portrayed as a satanic temptress. She is a calculating and reserved young woman as well as a powerful and skilled mistress of the dark side of the Force. Darth Mutialatus respected her and claimed she was wise. In spite of her youth, Hedashield bore a vast knowledge of both the past and the Force. Although Hedashield's physical skills possibly had already faded from her as she gradually gained weight due to a shockingly sedentary life, her Force-aided abilities of persuasion, manipulation and perception were tremendous. Hedashield showed little emotion, appearing very calm, and never spoke openly of her worry or distress regarding the circumstances against her and the Third Order, believing it wise to portray herself to her troops as confident no matter what the odds. When Kristen and B'en'jamin Thorrn escaped her clutches with evidence of her whereabouts, she hid her seething fury behind a mask of disappointment and calmly expressed her thoughts of their current situation to her followers, eventually letting off steam to Darth Mutialatus when they were alone. Despite her intelligent, sophisticated, and calm demeanor, Hedashield was actually known to be incredibly sinister, cruel, arrogant, egotistical, narcissistic, and overall a truly satanic individual from presumably the most diabolical kind much like Darth Bane before her, although arguably far darker in overall nature than even the deceased Sith Lord. Hedashield, additionally, was certainly not an individual who tolerated failure, so if anyone from the Third Order failed in what they were supposed to do, Hedashield would not hesitate to order their execution by one of their fellow followers. Similar to other practitioners of the dark side, notably the Sith, Hedashield was motivated by fear, specifically the fear of losing her power. Additionally, Hedashield was a cruel mistress as well as a predator, who identified weakness and exploited it, demonstrated by how Hedashield dominated not just the Third Order but specifically Mutialatus and Yara, making her a brutal tyrant. Like most dark siders, she suffered from enormous conceit and arrogance. Hedashield has created some weapons herself. To B'en'jamin Thorrn, she cleverly appeared an amorphous entity of shadowy mist floating around before she revealed herself, and captured him. Hedashield did not reveal herself as a Sith Lord to anyone except Darth Mutialatus. Powers and abilities Xerin Hedashield is extremely powerful and has an extremely strong connection to the Dark side of the Force. Her skills in the Force, unlike her physical strength, was tremendous. It is implied that Hedashield is far more powerful than B'en'jamin Thorrn or Darth Mutialatus. She possessed an affinity for Telekinesis, which she was known using to choke and throw her opponents. She was able to immobilize and restrain his targets effortlessly, which allowed her to manipulate their movements. Hedashield was able to use Force lightning, which she blasted against the floor like a shockwave to knock her apprentice off his feet and cause him immense pain and writhe in horrible agony. Relationships Kristen Xerin and Kristen have been enemies ever since Kristen turned up in the Star Wars galaxy. Hedashield is very convinced of her power, believing even she does not know it. Initially, she was interested in turning Kristen to the Dark Side of the Force, but eventually became disenchanted with her. Viewing her loyalty to the Jedi Order as "shortsighted and ultimately unbreakable", Hedashield wanted her dead very badly and in so doing, wipe out the fabled Pearian once and for all. B'en'jamin Thorrn Xerin seems to have a peculiar love-hate relationship with Padawan Learner B'en'jamin Thorrn. Xerin first met B'en in a field when she followed them, pretending to be acting on the orders of Master Yoda. The two, along with Kristen, spent a night at Hedashield's apartment, which she concealed as the Third Order's headquarters. Hedashield became very fond of Thorrn during this time. In turn, Thorrn developed a crush on Hedashield, who was one of the few people to voluntarily show him kindness and compassion, to the extent that she even began to call him "Mr. Handsome". The two parted ways, though she later encountered Thorrn during the Skirmish on Coruscant, where Thorrn was horrified to learn who Hedashield really was. On the other hand, she greatly longed to turn him to the Dark side and train him. Although Hedashield only saw Thorrn twice prior to the Battle of Coruscant, the two formed a legitimate emotional connection in Kristen's absence. During said battle, Thorrn accompanied Hedashield and she tried swaying him to the Dark side to no avail. As a result, she captured him, though this turned out to be the point where Thorrn made a critical decision, as he was disenchanted with the Jedi Order and comforted in Hedashield's presence. Hedashield began training him, and he eventually captured Kristen for her, earning her respect as the Pearian had until then proven impossible to imprison by any means. Darth Mutialatus Darth Mutialatus was the apprentice of Xerin Hedashield and, as a result, her most loyal and trusted follower. He held a deep respect for his mistress and listened to her teachings closely. She considered him of great importance, believing that he was destined for greatness beyond imagining. However, upon the escapes of Kristen and of B'en'jamin Thorrn, Hedashield was infuriated and began rethinking her apprentice's future, planning to change his purpose or kill him due to his instability. Hedashield's faith in her apprentice was irreparably damaged, and the young woman began to see Mutialatus as little more than an instrument, calling him a wannabe galactic overlord. Captain Cole Xerin initially was good friends with Captain Cole, captain of the Third Order, since he viewed her as his best bet to become a Sith Lord. Whether Xerin knew this is unknown, though unlikely. The two of them shared similar ideologies. While Hedashield continued to trust and possibly even like Cole, Cole realized Darth Mutialatus may have intended on overthrowing Hedashield someday, and based on that assumption, decided that he didn't want to serve her anymore, instead opting to claim her life to impress her right-hand man. He pretended to remain loyal, however, as he later told B'en'jamin Thorrn that quitting the Order was not an option in his eyes. While Xerin did not reveal her true emotions in his presence, she did allow him to comfort her when she was pretending to be agitated. Though she claimed she regretted the necessity of Cole's death at the hands of Darth Mutialatus, Xerin showed neither sadness nor concern for the loss of Cole's life. Omnipotent One It is unknown how Xerin Hedashield felt about fellow school student the Omnipotent One, but she made him a complex antidote when he was feeling ill. While he was fond of her, he had no idea she was behind the Third Order. Behind the scenes Both Xerin Hedashield's appearance and personality are based on early character development for Charity Hirz. Appearances *''Across the Portal: Interference'' *''Across the Portal 2'' Category:Characters Category:Females Category:Overweight characters Category:Villains Category:Across the Portal characters Category:Wise characters Category:Military characters Category:Humans Category:Third Order characters Category:Normal weight characters